Senate Lawmakers Open To Extending FBI Director

By Philip Bunnell

FBI Director Robert Mueller appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to testify about his future at the agency. Earlier this year, President Obama asked Congress to sign off on another two-year term for Mueller, who will reach his ten-year tenure limit this year. 

While some civil liberty groups have expressed concern over the FBI’s increased surveillance during Mueller’s tenure, and others over the established precedent of ten year terms for FBI directors, the committee seemed warm to another two years for Mueller.

Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said that he was “pleased that Republicans and Democrats have expressed support” for an extension. Al Franken (D-Minn.) raised some concerns over FBI surveillance, but also noted that the President called for Mueller to be extended to a time, “when [Obama] will not be president,” and thanked the Director for his service.

Mueller acknowledged that the surveillance had expanded under his tenure, but that rejected any allegations of abuse. Mueller did say that, initially, the agency did not execute National Security Letters in a constitutional way but quickly remedied that.

The committee’s top Republican, Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), was more reluctant, but still supportive. 

Grassley cited J. Edgar Hoover, the controversial FBI director who headed the agency for over 40 years, as a reason that the extension should be considered carefully. However, Grassley continued, “against this backdrop, I joined as a co-sponsor of… a bill that would extend the term of the current FBI Director for two years.” 

Grassley later warned that although the bill had wide bipartisan support, “I have resisted efforts to simply pass it with minimal deliberation.”

New Report Predicts Dismal Job Growth

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said Tuesday that a new report put out by the Center for Economic and Policy Research signals the need for Congress to pass a bill he co-authored aimed at boosting the labor market.

“When I go back to my state and talk to folks, I see a lot of people really hurting and I see a lot of people who are out of work. We need this bill.”

Franken and Rep. Keith Ellison, each co-sponsors of the Senate and House versions of the Local Jobs for America Act, believe the report’s dim forecast for job growth greatly underscores the need for legislation.

The report, entitled, “The Urgent Need for Job Creation,” shows that the U.S. economy as a whole will not recoup all of the jobs lost since the start of the recession until March of 2014. Additionally, the report highlights the fact that, assuming the trend rate of growth in the labor force, the nation’s unemployment rate will not return to pre-recession levels until April 2021.

Health Care Reform Not Responsible For Rising Cost Of Premiums, Say Democrats

By Chingyu Wang-Talk Radio News Service

Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) told reporters Friday that the rising cost of health care premiums does not mean that health care reform is not working.

"The purpose of this is to slow the growth. Premium rates are going to continue to go up, they are just not going to go up at the unsustainable pace they were," Franken said.

"[A higher premium] doesn't mean that we didn't bring down the growth of the premium," Franken added.

Franken pointed out that a provision in the new law requiring insurance providers to put at least 80% of premiums toward actual health services, instead of marketing campaigns, salaries or administrative costs, is expected to help curb increases.

Schakowsky added that measures in the law to boost transparency will also play a role in stemming costs. According to the Illinois Congresswoman, insurance providers will be required to provide customers with the justifications for rate increases. Schakowsky noted that companies that fail to provide this service will be banned from participating in the insurance exchanges set up through the law.

Attorney General Defends Prosecution Of 9/11 Mastermind In Federal Court, Discusses Prison Reform

By Ravi Bhatia-Talk Radio News Service

During his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday, Attorney General Eric Holder defended his decision to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, through the federal court system in New York rather than through military commissions.

President Barack Obama revived former President George W. Bush’s military commissions, also known as military tribunals, in May 2009 for a small number of Guantanamo Bay detainees. Obama's tribunals, deemed “Bush Light” by critics, provided terror suspects and war prisoners with more legal protections. However, the tribunals have been criticized for sacrificing American judicial values in order to prosecute prisoners quicker.

In his argument for employing federal courts rather than military courts, Holder cited the 300 convicted international and domestic terrorists currently in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons. He claimed that the United States could prosecute terrorists “safely and securely” in the federal system because “we have been doing it for years.”

“I studied this issue extensively,” Holder said in his opening statements. “I consulted the Secretary of Defense. I heard from prosecutors from my Department and from the Defense Department’s Office of Military Commissions. I spoke to victims on both sides of the question. And at the end of the day, it was clear to me that the venue in which we are most likely to obtain justice for the American people is in the federal court.”

While Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) defended Holder, saying that “we can rely on the American justice system,” the decision was met with criticism from Republican members of the committee. In one instance, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) called Holder’s choice “a perversion of the justice system.”

“You’re a fine man,” Graham said to Holder. “I know you want to do everything to help this country be safe but I think you’ve made a fundamental mistake here.”

Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) mentioned that Mohammed had already said he would plead guilty to the terrorists acts.

“How could you be more likely to get a conviction in federal court when Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has already asked to plead guilty before military commission and be executed?” Kyl asked, garnering scattered applause and laughter from some audience members. “How can you be more likely to get a conviction in an Article III [federal] court than that?”

In response, Holder said, “the determination I make ... does not depend on the whims or the desires of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. He said he wanted to do that then. I have no idea with what he wants to do now with regards to these military commissions that now [have] enhanced protections. My job is to look at the possibilities."

Holder also touched on issues such as prison reform legislation, claiming that drug courts specifically established for non-violent crimes have so far been effective, responding to Senator Al Franken's (D-Minn.) opinion that too many prisoners were in prison for drug possession.

“We’re essentially [taking] kids who are in possession of drugs and sending them to crime school," Franken said. "They learn from other criminals how to do crime, and two-thirds of them come back [after] they’re released within three years.”

“I’m familiar with the [drug court] we have here in Washington, D.C.... that has [proven] to be very successful in dealing with people who are selling drugs because they are addicted to drugs,” Holder said. “These are low level dealers, not the people who live in penthouses and drive big cars and all that.”

Holder recommended a data driven analysis of the U.S. prison system. He said that a “sentencing group” is looking at a “wide variety” of issues in U.S. prisons.

“Who is in jail?” Holder asked. “Are they in jail for appropriate amounts of time? Is the amount of time they spend in jail a deterrent? Does that have an impact on the recidivism rate? This group will be reporting back to me within the next couple of months. It is on that basis that we’ll be formulating policy and working with the Committee.”

Senator-elect Franken Receives Warm Welcome From Democrats

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

Senator-elect Al Franken (D-Minn.) is receiving a warm welcome from Congressional Democrats, complete with a press conference alongside Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). During his brief statement, Franken struck a more serious tone than that of his days as a comedian. 

“I am going to work day and night to make sure that our kids have a great future and that America’s best days lay ahead. I’m ready to get to work,” said Franken.

Franken will raise the total number of Democrats in the Senate to 60. However, Franken said all he is focused on is the number two, noting that he sees himself as the second Senator from the state of Minnesota. 

“Much has been made of the expectations of Al Franken joining the Senate,” said Reid. “Here are my expectations. He, of course, is going to work hard for the people of Minnesota. They’ve gone far too long without full representation...I expect him to help deliver on the change that this country is demanding.”

Franken described Minnesotans as practical people, adding that his constituents want to make sure the work being done in the Senate makes sense and has a “strong return for investments.”

Franken highlighted health care, economy, energy policy, and education as some of his major concerns.